Method of making warp beam sleeves



April 4, 1944. J. J. LADDEN METHOD OF MAKING WARP BEAM SLEEVE Filed April 15, 1942 I'NVENT'OR. .J'ouu J. Laouar TORNEY Patented Apr. 4, 1944 METHOD OF MAKING WARP BEAM SLEEVES John J. Ladden, Worcester, Mass, assignor to Crompton & Knowles Loom Works, Worcester, Mass, a corporation of Massachusetts Application April 13, 1942, Serial No. 438,771

4 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in warp beams for looms and it is the general object of the invention to provide an improved beam and an improved method for manufacturing it which will provide a slot for thread clam-ping bar.

At the beginning of the operation of winding warp threads on a beam their ends are laid over a longitudinally extendin slot in the beam barrel and a clamp rod or bar is then forced into the slot to hold the warp ends frictionally. Warp beams may be made either with a continuous steel tube or with a wooden barrel having tubular steel sleeves at its ends to receive the warp heads. When the sleeves are used they are fitted to the wooden part of the barrel so that the slots of the latter align with the slots of the sleeves.

Various method have been proposed liereto fore for forming the warp clamping bar slot but in most instances considerable expens and several steps in the manufacture have been involved. It is an important object of m present invention to form the sleeves with a plurality of relatively narrow bridges integral with the sleeve and then pres these bridges to form the warp clamping bar slot.

It is a further object of my present invention to provide a tubular sleeve with a set of spaced perforations between which extend bridges or the like the aggregate width of which is considerably less than the length of the sleeve and then I? depress the bridges without deforming the sleeve itself. This result can be obtained due to the fact that the depressing force is exerted at spaced intervals and not along the entire length of the sleeve.

It is another object of my present invention to provide a series of spaced slots or perforations having substantially parallel longitudinally extending sides and then depress the bridges between the slots so that the width of the depressed portions is substantially the same as the width of the slots. In this way the sides of the slots align with the inner slides of the depressed bridge to form a slot of substantially uniform width throughout the length of the sleeve.

With these and other objects in view which will appear as the description proceeds, my invention resides in the combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter described and set forth.

In the accompanying drawing, wherein a convenient embodiment of my invention is set forth,

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a warp beam made according to my present invention,

Fig. 2 is a vertical section on line 2-2 of Fig. 1,

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the sleeve made according to my present invention prior to cutting of the screw threads which receive the warp heads, and

Figs. 4 to 11 represent various steps in the method of manufacturing the sleeve.

Referring to Figs. 1 and 2, tbe warp beam comprises in the present instance a wooden barrel I!) made preferably of upper and lower sections II and I2 through which extends a shaft or gudgeon l3 by which the beam is supported in the winding machine and the loom. Friction heads l5 are located on the outer ends of the beam and adjustable warp heads l6 are threaded on tubular sleeves l'l secured to the ends of the wooden barrel which are of reduced diameter to receive the sleeves. The warp heads Hi can be rotated to cause them to move along the sleeves to var the width of the warp space. The matter thus far described, except the sleeves it, may be the same as heretofore used and as set forth in prior patent to Wing No. 2,025,923.

My present invention relates to the sleeve l1 and the method by which it is made. In carrying my invention into eiiect I provide a relatively short metallic tube of circular cross section as shown in Fig. 4 and mount the same on an anvil 2! supported by stands 22, see Fig. 6. I then force a die 23 having spaced punches 24 against the cylinder as suggested in Figs. 5 and 6 to form a plurality of spaced slots or perforations 25 which have parallel sides 26, see Fig. 7. The slots 25 define between them bridges 2'! and there will preferably be a bridge at each end of the cylinder. This punching operation is carried out while the cylinder is cold.

The cylinder thus punched is then placed on a second anvil having a removabl die insert 31 provided with a longitudinally extending rounded groove 32 the upper ends of which may be curved toward the horizontal as suggested in Fig. 8. The die 30 is mounted on supports and a punch 35 having a lower surface 36 conforming to the groove 32 is forced down against the bridges 21 to depress them to the form suggested in Fig. 8. At the end of this operation, which is also carried out while the cylinder and bridges are cold, the slots 25 will be located symmetrically with respect to the depressed bridges.

In the next step in the operation of forming the sleeve the die 3| is replaced with a die 40 having a horizontal bottom 4| and substantially vertical sides 42. The bridges are then heated to red heat and a punch 43, provided with an elongated tongue 44 having sides 45 and a bottom 46 to conform to the groove of die 40, is forced downwardly from the position of Fig. 9 to that shown in Fig. 10. Extending on either side of the tongue are concave surfaces 41 which have the same radius of curvature as the cylinder. The tongue 44 is of less width than the width of the slot 48 in the die 40 preferably by an amount equal to twice the thickness of the wall of the cylinder. As the punch 43 is forced downwardly against the die 40 it causes the bridges to assume the form shown in Fig. 10 with vertical side walls 49 and connected by floors 50.

During the first part of the descent of tongue I 44 it passes between the circumferentially spaced side edges 26 at the beginning of the formation of the side walls 49. As the tongue continues to descend it engages the edges 26 to prevent reduction of the cylinder diameter as the bridges are pressed down. In this way the perforations,

being of substantially the same width as the tongue 44 cooperate with the latter to preserve the original diameter of the cylinder.

One feature of my invention is that the tongue 44 is of substantially the same width as the slots 25 and the cylinder is so placed relatively to die 40 and punch 43 that the sides 49 of the bridges as finally formed are in substantial alignment with the edges 26. It is for this reason that the warp clamp bar B will be able to clamp the Warp threads W which extend along the edges 26 as well as those which lie along the bridges.

From the foregoing it will be seen that I have provided an improved form of warp beam sleeve having spaced depressed bridges which alternate with slots the width of which is substantially the same as the distance between adjacent vertical walls 49 of the depressed bridges, hence the bar B clamps the warp threads against the edges 26 and walls 49 to hold them firmly during the winding operation. During the depressing operations only those parts 5| of the cylinder 28 which are directly connected to the bridges are subjected to deforming forces, while those parts 52 of the cylinder adjacent to the perforations 25, not being similarly strained, reinforce and support the other parts which connect with the bridges. In actual practice I find that the parts 52 support the concave surfaces 41 of die 43 and assist the latter to give the bridges their correct final form. Furthermore, the edges 26 engage the sides of tongue 44 and with the latter prevent the drawing operation on the bridges from reducing the diameter of the cylinder. The warp beam described in the foregoing is not claimed herein but is made the subject matter of a divisional application.

Having thus described my invention'it will be seen that changes and modifications may be made therein by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention and I do not wish to be limited to the details herein disclosed, but what I claim is:

1. The method of fabricating a warp beam forming element from a metallic cylinder consisting in the following steps: punching the cylinder wall to form perforations arranged in a series extending along the length of the cylinder with the circumferentially spaced edges of the perforations aligned in two rows parallel to the cylinder axis, thereby forming bridges integral with the cylinder between perforations, and simultaneously depressing the bridges to form walls aligned with said rows of edges and preventing "movement of said rows of edges toward each other while the bridges are being depressed.

2.. The method of fabricating a warp beam forming element from a metallic cylinder consistport said edges as the die and said bridges move toward the cylinder axis.

3. The method of fabricating a warp beam forming element from a metallic cylinder consisting in the following steps: forming in the cylinder wall spaced perforations having aligned edges arranged in two rows extending lengthwise of the cylinder and spaced circumferentially of the cylinder, thereby defining bridges integral with the cylinder between the perforations, providing an elongated die having sides spaced a distance substantially equal to the distance between said two rows of aligned edges of the slots, and forcing said die while substantially parallel to the cylinder axis against said bridges and toward the cylinder axis to bend said bridges inwardly while the sides of the die engage said rows of edges of the slots to prevent movement of said rows of edges toward each other.

4. The method of fabricating a warp beam forming element from a metallic cylinder consisting in the following steps: forming in the cylinder wall spaced perforations having aligned edges arranged in two rows extending lengthwise of the cylinder and spaced circumferentially of the cylinder, thereby defining bridges integral with the cylinder between the perforations, providing an elongated die having a width substantially equal to the distance between said rows of edges of the aligned slots, disposing said die with the opposite sides thereof aligned with said rows of edges, and thereafter forcing said die toward the cylinder axis to bend said bridges inwardly and simultaneously move the sides of the die to engaging position with respect to said rows of aligned edges to support the latter and hold the same in their original spaced relationship as the gridges are moved toward the cylinder axis by the JOHN J. LADDEN. 

